News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1887-07-28
TOM BALLARD'S CAREER.
Detective Perkins Tells About the
Arrest of the Famous Counter
fciter.
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.)

Thomas Ballard, the famous counter
feiter and probably the most skillful en-
graver in the world, is a free man. Thir-
teen wears ago he was arrested at Buffalo
by Detective Perkins, of this city. A
few DAYS ago, as has already been pub
Hshed, he was p0rdoned by President
Cleveland.
When detective Perkins was asked
about Ballard and the capture yesterday
he said: 81 am glad the man is free,
because, from all can learn, he Is thor
oughly reformed. He is q genial, good
natured fellow, and one of the most III
telligent men I ever ran across. There
isn't q man i'll the world who is his
equal as an engraver. He is one OF five
brothers, every one of whom was Skill
full counterfeiter.
ssBallard was first arrested for making
bad money in 1871. He broke ont OF
the Ludlow Street Jail, however, and
escaped to Washington, ID. c., where
he worked for some time in q carriage
factory, right under the caves OF the
Treasury Department 1t was in 1874
that [ was sent to Buffalo by the Secret
| Service to run down a gang that had
! been literally flooding the country with
| counterfeit bills. An old man who kept
| hotel Just across from Buffalo, on the
Canada side, put me on the track of the
| cOunterfeiter, and after a weeks work L
arrested Ben Ballard Toms brother,
and Oscar Finch, quietly, at Detroit, to
which place | had followed them. Soon
after arrested George Ballard, and by
soaring him little got him to give up
the hiding place of the gang.
''He pointed out the place, and early
one morning, with p dozen officers, |
made a raid on the place. Tom Ballard
| tried to escape by climbing out on the
roof, but we got our revolvers on him
and made him come down. The house
was found to be literally flied with
counterfeit money. It was III every
drawer and cupboard and box from Gel
lar TO garret, and even the pockets OF
the old clothes we found were full OF the
stuff. There was over $i15, 600 OF 1t al
topather. Besides the money, there
were plates, engrayers' tools, chemicals
electric apparatus and everything nee
eseary to run first-class money factory
One of the plates, that was not quite
finished. was a counterfeit OF ten-uol
lar bill on the British Bank OF Nortl
America. I took an impression OF L
and sent it to the bank official, and they
told me it was finer than the original.
'Ballard escaped from the Auburn
iail couple of weeks after he was cap
tured, but he was retalsen day or tive
later. He was tried i'll Albany. / wa
the only witness called against HIM nm
He was indicted on three charges an(
was sentenced to thirty years IN tn
penitentiary. 1t is safe to say that NJ
man who ever entered the Albany penn
tentiary made so many friends IN s, St
short time as Ballard. Everybody
from the wardens to the turnkeys, like
him. Everybody was kind to him
Twice he tried to commit suicide, onc
in his cell by ripping his stomach open
another time in the shoe shop by cuttlnt
his throat. Each time he had a YER
narrow escape from death. Five or 81,
years ago the Young Mems Ghnstl,l
Association took nn interest in him an'
did much towards laGking new man o
him. While Hayes was President til
! movement to have him pardoned wa